


A Little Push

by Grain_Crain



Series: Tumblr Asks [1]
Category: Tom Clancy's Rainbow Six (Video Games)
Genre: Drama, Fluff, M/M, Pining, Success, Tumblr Prompt
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2019-04-16
Updated: 2019-04-16
Packaged: 2020-01-14 22:09:04
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 2,004
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/18485374
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Grain_Crain/pseuds/Grain_Crain
Summary: This is a tumblr request asked byDatGirlSuzieon tumblr. The asked prompt is “I’m not going to stop poking you until you give me some attention.”





	A Little Push

**Author's Note:**

  * For [DatGirlSuzie](https://archiveofourown.org/users/DatGirlSuzie/gifts).



Rook’s job is simple at best. He places his bag down, shares plated vests for his teammates and reminds those who hasn’t picked it up yet. Easy as it sounds, there are a few roamers who doesn’t follow the safety precaution; hence they make a nagger out of the youngest in the base. Rook’s caring nature even reached out to those who doesn’t seem to care, to which Bandit was no exception. Well, Rook focused on him mostly particularly out of secret bias that he hoped nobody would suspect. As he knew of Bandit being capable and all, his heart still dropped whenever the German left without taking any of the provided armour. No matter how many times Bandit left Rook screaming at him to grab the armour, the man never obliged.

People thought Rook would get tired of being ignored and eventually let Bandit perish to his own fault. Wrong. The young French’s naive dedication and adoration is nothing to be taken lightly. Despite people telling him against the idea, Rook decided to visit the GSG9 dorm and have one-on-one conversation with Bandit. He thought he could change Bandit for the better, make the man allow to be cared for. This one-sided lecture went on almost everyday despite Bandit’s dismay.

“Dominic, you need to do everything to stay alive! Why won’t you wear the armour?”

“It slows me down.” Bandit shrugged and reminded of all the reasons that he had told Rook countlessly. It’s mostly about him preferring to roam and destroy drones before the attackers come in.

“But you might die! There’ll be people mourning for you.” Rook shook his head in disbelief.

“Rather the opposite.” Bandit scoffed at the idea of his ‘old’ gang and a few family members arranging a joint party disguised as funeral.

“Surely you don’t believe that!” Rook grasped on Bandit’s shoulder, “Don’t you care for those who cares for you?”

“Hm, cry me a river. Seems like you care a lot.” Bandit sneered at the naivety.

“I will,” Rook replied while starting straight back at Bandit, “Even if you won’t acknowledge how much I care.” He waited to see some sort of reaction from Bandit, but soon became disappointed when not a colour changed on his face. Rook left the room and that was the last time he saw Bandit for the entire week. They never made the effort to avoid the each other and soon the lack of communication had built the invisible wall between them. The wall grew thicker due to negligence and he didn’t want to let Bandit hurt him like this. But what could he do? He didn’t know what to say and was afraid to feel even more disappointed. Ever since then, Rook spent more time with his GIGN comrades for comfortable closure and forced himself away from the irresistible devil.

 

* * *

 

Then comes Friday afternoon, the crucial time of the week when Rainbow team commence their usual routine of practice. The abandoned site is already prepared for the entire night’s worth of shooting, and the operators are quick to organise themselves before the action phase. Rook lays out his duffel bag as he always does, turns away to reinforce the wall and hears the familiar sounds of velcros being undone and reattached. He counts one, two, three and doesn’t expect the fourth one to be adorned, so it comes as a surprise when he hears a clear ruffle of _zip._ Deliberately loud and slow as if the wearer is waiting for Rook to turn around and see.

“About time, Brunsmeier.” Rook hears Doc scoffing at the least likely person to finally cave in.

“Don’t mention it.” He also hears an affirmation from Bandit; judging by the flat tone, Rook can only guess if Bandit is unimpressed at being called out on. A sense of relief washes over Rook, but would he forgive Bandit? _Not a chance_. He shouldn’t go back on being soft to Bandit unless there’s a proper apology.

"Wall fortification compl-" Rook halts when something jabs on his ribs; a finger poking the gap between his gears and ultimately tickling him. _Who the fuck dares to goof around right now?_

“Hey,” Bandit grabs Rook’s attention by standing quite close to him, and somehow holding the younger man’s hand to finish off the reinforcement, “Are you satisfied?

“Of what?” Rook replies with a tinge of ice in his demeanor.

“ _This._ ” Bandit disregards the attitude and shrugs to show the black vest with GIGN logo on him.

“Nothing special about it. Now go and do what you need to do. No need to waste your time here.” _Ooooh._ That turns a few head towards the two. It would be lie to say he doesn’t feel a tiny speck of satisfaction when he made a rebuttal, so he dares not to face Bandit before a smug smile appears on his lips.

He assumes that’s the end of their interaction for the day, and yet he is wrong again. Whenever there is a new round of defending phase, Bandit persists to either nudge or jab on Rook’s rib to show that he’s wearing the armour. Is this a cry for attention? Perhaps a boast? Sneer? Taunt? Whatever it is, it’s not an apology or a polite gesture. Thus Rook doesn’t hesitate to give the man cold shoulders and focus more on what they are supposed to do. To be on constant vigilance and guard, run tirelessly and watch out for any opposing team entering the site. Act as if this is the most real encounter with lethal threats.  And that’s how they spent the entire evening, eventually rendering themselves into tired ragdolls who are knackered and drained until limbs are limp. At some point Rook feels the familiarly annoying poke on the back of his neck, but he grunts an automatic response out of tiredness.

 

* * *

 

Rook has no idea when he fell asleep. Not that he has a complaint about it because that means the hellish training has finished, and soft murmurs of people around him gives a sense of comfort. They must be on their shuttle van, a safe place where they don’t have to pretend murdering each other. His consciousness fades into deeper slumber and there seem to be a pillow to support his falling head. A little rigid, but it will do just fine. Everything is fine and dandy until a mild pressure on his cheek make him furrow an eyebrow. Soon it becomes a persistent nudge, then a hard jab which begins to hurt a little.

“ _Quoi?_ ” Rook thwarts off the source of annoyance. He remembers a similar frustration of being bothered like this, but his exhausted mind can’t process what’s happening as of his moment. All he wants is to rest those dry-red eyes, but now his body jolts in sudden tingle of nerves under his armpit. He peeps open to see what’s disturbing him and finds out that he’s still in the van shared by his defender teammates. There is a blurry figure on his left, which he assumes to be Doc, so Rook soon goes back to sleep.  

“Up we go, lazy boy. We’re nearly here.” Someone tickles Rook again and has managed to bring him back to the real world.

“ _Cinq minutes de plus_ , _papa_ .  
[Five more minutes, papa.]” Rook groans and buries his head deep into the cushions.

“Did you just call me your ‘papa’?” The man’s chuckle prompts Rook to sit up in a speed of light. Half awake and equally baffled with embarrassment, Rook wishes that the person who has been disturbing him is one of his closer friends. Does the God grant his wish and save his dignity? _No._ He sees the residential troublemaker Bandit staring back at him.

“I-”

“Can’t say that I’m surprised,” Bandit pats on his own shoulder and grimaces at a patch of wetness. A drool. _Not like this. Please God, no._ Hot blood rush through his entire body when Rook’s train of thought runs its course. Of course he would make a mistake of calling his crush a _daddy_ , and of-fucking-course he also made a mistake of developing an attraction towards someone who is considerately older than him. On top of all that, Rook has been drooling on Bandit like an infant, “Are you embarrassed?”

“No.” Rook shifts away and quickly looks around to check his surrounding. Most of his colleagues are either asleep or have headphones on, so none of them might have heard anything at all.

“You aren’t too good at lying.” Bandit leans back and puts a space apart between them, then decides against it by moving closer. No matter how close he may be, Rook plasters his face towards the window rather than looking back to see what Bandit is scheming. Then comes the one single pin-point press on his rib. _A poke._

“Stop that,” Rook flails and manages to catch the hand without even looking at it, “Stop.” A giggly cough escapes when Bandit pokes him with the other hand.

“I’m not going to stop poking you until you give me some attention.”

“Is that what you’ve been doing this whole time?” Rook has to check the face of an absurd clown who spews out such nonsense. He’s taken aback to witness an uncanny seriousness from such handsome mask, and also at the fact that they are only a breath away from each other.

“Yes,” Bandit softens his posture, “I’ve been trying to catch you alone. So much for that when you are always surrounded by your… family.”

“I see,” Rook blushes yet again for clinging onto his CTU mates while moping about what happened between him and Bandit, “Well, _someone_ hasn’t been appreciative of what I do for him.” Those words sound sulkier than he thought.

“That’s true,” Bandit is quick to admit.

“Oh, you think so?” Rook is genuinely confused at this point.

“Yes,” Bandit falters and scratches his chin, “I’m not honest; no surprise there. I guess whatever I say offends people when I don’t intend it that way,” He explains whatever he had said before didn’t mean to disrespect Rook. Bandit preferred to operate how he did back in Germany; without armour or extra protection, and solely rely on his wits and agility with immaculate time management, “And it took me some time to realise that I’ve hurt you. You’re someone that I’ve had no idea how to deal with.”

“...Someone like me.” Rook’s heart sinks, wondering if Bandit will say something even weirder and worse.

“You’re positive, caring and passionate. I’ve come to realise that it’s not a bad idea to have someone like that pining for me.” Bandit diverts his gaze for a moment and misses out on the absolute dumb-founded shock on the other man’s face.

“Wait, what? You knew?! Since when?”

“Since you nagged me to have a private chat with you,” Bandit regains his usual sense of cockiness, clearly amused at Rook’s reaction, “I thought you wanted something with less clothing on, but I guess your compassionate ‘lecture’ has touched me in a way no other man can do.” He can prolong the tease and amusement, but stops when other people starts to stir up from their short nap.

“ _Mon dieu._ ” Rook is tomato red at this point and it’s quite visible no matter how hard he tries to hide.

“So Julien,” Bandit scoots closer to whisper on those heated ears, “Will you lecture me more tonight?” He reaches out a hand for a consent.

“Only if you promise me to forget about what I’ve called you in my sleep.” Rook accepts and shake the hand that’s been offered. Slightly cold with thin sheet of sweat; he wonders if Bandit has been nervous as well during this entire conversation.

“I can’t guarantee that. It might slip out of your mouth when we pull an all-nighter.” And that’s how Bandit earns a loud thwack on his back, which surely will be a frequent thing between them as they embark on this new relationship.

 

**Author's Note:**

> "Imma only write 1000 words for prompt asks," I said.  
> "I will keep it short and sweet," I said, also.


End file.
